The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is being asked to reimburse the government’s currency paper printing presses for the loss and wastage the presses incurred because of the note demonetisation of November 8, 2016.

According to The Indian Express, the compensation demanded is to the tune of Rs 577 crore.

The Rs 577 crore figure is due to the huge consignments of currency note paper used for the Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denominations. These consignments were both indigenous and imported.

Besides this, the cost of wasted ink and other materials used specifically for these denominations as well as costs for additional factors like transportation and packing have also been taken into account.

Top government officials and officials in the currency paper printing establishment told The Indian Express that the matter was under discussion and since the printing presses were captive units (they do no commercial work), the losses they incurred on account of demonetisation would surely have to be offset.

The notes that were demonetised on November 8, 2016, or the specified bank notes (SBNs), were worth Rs 15.45 lakh crore. This was the majority of the overall Rs 17.97 lakh crore that was in circulation during that period – meaning, 86% of India’s currency was rendered valueless overnight on November 8.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his speech on November 8, said that the move was to curb black money, counterfeit currency and terror funding.

The RBI was widely criticised for not disclosing information on how much black money demonetisation was able to neutralise.

Last week, it released its annual report which seemed to vindicate a lot of demonetisation’s criticisms. The RBI annual report revealed, among other things, that almost all of the demonetised currency has found its way back to the central bank. The report also concludes that only 0.0007% of Rs 1,000 notes and 0.002% of old Rs 500 notes were found to be fake. (Overview of the RBI’s report can be read here.)

There are four currency note printing presses in India. There are the two currency presses of the Public Sector Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SPMCIL), which operates printing presses in Nashik and Dewas, and the two of the Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Pvt Ltd (BRBNMPL), which is an RBI subsidiary and operates printing presses at Mysore and Salboni, West Bengal.

99% Demonetised Currency Back In System, Says RBI Report: Where Is The Black Money?

RBI Has Not Printed Any Rs 2000 Notes For 5 Months, To Focus On Rs 200 Notes Instead

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Know Why This Small Town In Tamil Nadu Is In The Guinness Book Of World Records

Did you know there is a town at the southern tip of India that can be called ‘Heaven on Earth’. Its people realise the importance of keeping the environment clean.

Madukkarai Panchayat in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu, is the cleanest place in India, owing to around 50 women who wake up every day to collect waste from each and every household in the town. At 6 AM, the women set out to work with their green jackets on, hands covered in gloves and caps adjusted perfectly on their heads. Every morning they line up for the roll call. These ‘Green Friends’ are part of the solid waste management program supported by ACC Cement – Madukkarai.

Madukkarai, a small town at the tip of the country, is in the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest recycling lesson in the world. With the help of around 50 women, who are now called ‘Green Friends’, and a simple, scalable model, this town is leading the way for efficient waste management. #SwachhBharat

While most of us find someone to put the blame on, Madukkarai decided to take control in their own hands. The town has 8,000 households and a population of 42,000. 82% of the homes hand over garbage to ‘Green Friends’ every day. 1,440 tonnes of garbage is collected annually from the town of 18 wards and 107 streets.

There is a lot that we can learn from Madukkarai. One of the most disturbing realities that we face, despite which part of the country we reside in, is the similar dirt everywhere – garbage piled up on roadside, drains clogged with plastic bags and dogs chewing on the leftover food we have callously thrown on the streets.

We keep our homes clean; make sure that the floors are mopped every day. But why do we not share the same sentiment for our surroundings? We hardly realize that the street outside our home is as much ours as is anybody else’s. We are the ones who use these roads every day to commute. Madukkarai realized this and the importance of a clean environment for our health and well-being.

Guinness Book of World Records for the largest recycling lesson in the world

‘Green Friends’ collect household wastes in eight different bins for wet waste, kitchen waste, plastic waste, etc. This is then disposed in large bins kept in several parts of the town. Trucks pick up this waste daily and take it to the resource recovery park where the garbage is recycled.

The treatment center segregates the different types of wastes. The kitchen waste is converted into fertilizers and given to farmers at extremely low prices to use in cultivation of their crops. The plastic waste is processed to be used in the construction of roads, and also at the large ACC factory where it is used as fuel at high temperatures which does not even cause pollution.

Due to the efforts of ‘Green Friends’, the citizens of Madukkarai, and the municipality, there has been a 60% reduction in landfill waste over the span of three years. There has also been a 50% reduction in the vehicle movement to the landfill sites, 85% of organic waste is converted successfully into vermin compost, ample reduction in the use of fossil fuels, reduction in greenhouse gas emission to 60%, and substantial decrease in the spread of malaria and dengue among the people. Furthermore, barren lands provided for compost yard have been successfully converted into fully functional organic compost yard and non-recyclable waste is used as an alternative energy source for the cement industry.

Madukkarai’s citizens have also become more environment-friendly, with 30% of the households segregating the organic-recyclable waste at home.

What we can learn

Madukkarai has paved the way to the sustainable development of our world. They have shown us that is not impossible to keep our environment clean. All we need is to inculcate in us a concern for mother Earth. It is commendable that ACC is supporting Madukkarai in its venture and helping it stay clean.

We, as citizens of other towns, cities, villages and states in India, have a lot to learn from Madukkarai. We too can have a healthier life if only we care enough and practice our civil duties proudly.